page_title: 18th Battalion (New Zealand)
section_title: Formation and training
hierarchical_section_title: 18th Battalion (New Zealand) / Formation and training
caption_attribution_description: English: Maadi military camp, with Cairo in the background. Photograph taken by G R Bull, circa 1941. Bull, George Robert, 1910-1966. Department of Internal Affairs. War History Branch :Photographs relating to World War 1914-1918, World War 1939-1945, occupation of Japan, Korean War, and Malayan Emergency. Ref: DA-11253. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand. George Bull was an official photographer of the NZ Military Forces and thus copyright in this work rests or rested with the Crown. The Crown has released this work under the CC-BY 3.0 unported license. Refer to source website for details: http://natlib.govt.nz/about-this-site/copyright-and-privacy. This work's copyright expired 50 years after creation in New Zealand and probably also in countries following the rule of the shorter term.
context_page_description: The 18th Battalion was a formation of the New Zealand Military Forces which served, initially as an infantry battalion and then as an armoured regiment, during the Second World War as part of the 2nd New Zealand Division.
  The 18th Battalion was formed in New Zealand in September 1939. After a period of training, in 1940 it embarked for the Middle East as part of the 2nd New Zealand Division and then, in 1941, on to Greece. It participated in the Battle of Greece and later in the fighting on Crete. Evacuated from Crete, it then fought in the North African Campaign and suffered heavy losses during Operation Crusader. Brought back up to strength, in June 1942 the battalion participated in the breakout of the 2nd New Zealand Division from Minqar Qaim where it had been encircled by the German 21st Panzer Division. The following month, the battalion fought in the First Battle of El Alamein.
  In October 1943, the battalion was converted to armour and re-designated the 18th Armoured Regiment. To replace men lost at El Alamein, personnel were drawn from a tank brigade being formed in New Zealand.
context_section_description: Following the outbreak of the Second World War, the New Zealand government authorised the formation of the 2nd New Zealand Expeditionary Force (2NZEF), for service at home and abroad. After consulting with the British government, it was decided that the main New Zealand contribution to the war effort would be in the form of an infantry division, the 2nd New Zealand Division, under the command of Major General Bernard Freyberg. The new division would require nine battalions of infantry and consequently, several infantry battalions were formed from 1939 to 1940 with New Zealand volunteers.
  The 18th Battalion was formed in September 1939 under the command of Lieutenant Colonel John Gray. It was the first of three infantry battalions designated to make up the first echelon of the 2nd New Zealand Division, destined for overseas service. Its personnel, all volunteers, were drawn from the Northern Military District, which took in the upper half of the North Island of New Zealand. They were formed into four rifle companies, designated A to D and corresponding to the Auckland, Hauraki/Bay of Plenty/Rotorua, Northland and Waikato districts. A headquarters company included the specialist support troops; signallers, anti-aircraft and mortar platoons, pioneers and transport as well as administrative personnel.
  A period of rudimentary training followed, firstly at Hopuhopu Military Camp and then at Papakura, before it was confirmed that the battalion was on active service. It departed New Zealand on the Orient liner RMS Orion for the Middle East on 5 January 1940 as part of the 4th Infantry Brigade, 2nd Division New Zealand Division. Before it left, it paraded before the public at the Auckland Domain and was addressed by the commander of the Northern Military District, Lieutenant Colonel Norman Weir.
  The Orion journeyed to its destination as part of a convoy of liners by way of Fremantle, Colombo, and Aden before it arrived at Tewfik, Egypt, where the battalion disembarked on 13 February 1940. After a train ride to Cairo, the battalion arrived at what would the main base in the Middle East for the 2NZEF, Maadi Camp, in mid-February. At Maadi, the battalion undertook further training. Following Italy's entry into the war in June, it moved to a newly established defensive position, the Baggush Box, to perform garrison duty. It remained there for the next several months, conducting regular patrols and working on the improvement of the defensive positions. During this time, the battalion suffered its first casualties of the war, although non-fatal, as a result of Italian air raids. By January 1941, the defensive work was completed and the battalion moved to Helwan Camp, near Cairo, for re-equipping and more intensive and large scale training.
caption: For a period in 1940, the 18th Battalion was based at Maadi military camp, seen here in 1941 with Cairo in the background
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